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NY part II: Still in the big Apple

Hey again!!

Still sharing New York with you. I know these snaps are probably very touristy, and would love to go back and learn about the "Real New York", but these are the basics and you have to start from somewhere!!

New York New York, it's a wonderful town!

Calling all travelers and the "stay at home types" this is a place you MUST visit.

Coldplay, Wembley, London, June 19th 2016!

Coldplay!!

The last of Massachusetts!

We were only spending 2 days in Boston, a quick different break before heading to the Big Apple.

Boston

Well hello USA!!

About 6 months ago was searching through sky scanner, as you do, as found these amazingly cheap flights to US with Norwegian from Gatwick, which for me is only 30 minute train away, so much better than going to Heathrow!

Anyway, on to Boston and New York for a week it is!

All aboard the second part! (Caribbean cruisin')

Welcome back! We are half way through the cruising. thinking about it now in March where we still aren't in any sort of sunny Spring is quite depressing!!

Prague, a city break away!

Quite a while back my uni friends and I started looking at dates for a ling weekend away, we live all over the place around Spain and Uk so it was important to book very far in advance.

Ship Ahoy!! It's the Caribbean!

So when your currently sitting in Hairdresser waiting for your Babylights to take it's always a good time to do some writing!


So, todays topic, cruising. I am lucky enough to have a performing older brother who happens to have bagged a contract on board Royal Caribbean Allure of the Seas playing Sam in MAMMA MIA. So when us family members are allowed to join for a silly price, it's like a no brainer.

 

Magnum Experience

A belated post really, but when I visited Athens back in the Summer, came across this little gem and had to share.

Magnum opened these pop-up stores all around the world this Summer to celebrate 25th birthday, but I first found one in Athens, I have since then come across the one in London on Covent Garden, but being London, this had a HUGE queue outside the doors with special barriers and all.. the experience in Athens was a lot more peaceful.

1. Chose your flavour ice cream and have it dipped in chocolate, went for white of course!

2. Chose your topings!

3. And a drizzle of a little more chocolate on top!

 

  

4. Utter BLISS!!

Making me want to grab one now! even in this autumnal weather...!!

Oxford

Getting time to do some blogging is quite difficult, then I end up going on to my camera and realizing I have millions of old photos that I need to share with the world!

I'm not one for making future plans, so when it comes to last-minute plans I'm the queen!! You don't always get the deals but it's also exiting to decide to do something the day before.

This time, Oxford it was.

Malmaison is a company that restores old buildings and turns them into quirky 4*/5* hotels and their offer ^Sunday stop over^ is a huge reason to go. Malmaison Oxford is a, wait for it, restored prison!!

Let me explain the offer, so if your like me and you get Mondays off work because you work Saturdays, if you spend £75 at their Brasserie, which is easily done with a few cocktails, you get to stay in the hotel for £25!! So that's dinner and hotel room for £100 for two people! And the venue is great! Excellent offer if you ask me! Mind you, breakfast isn't included but you can pay £15 extra for that, I wouldn't say it's worth it though, I've stayed at Malmaison Oxford before and had the breakfast, it isn't buffet, you chose from a list of options, which if you ask me, the whole point of a hotel breakkie is the lovely chopped fruit, and having what you fancy!

So, dinner time it was, I went for a tuna steak with Pak Choi and a beautiful desert of sticky toffee pudding, one of the faves! Gulped down with post dinner cocktails! No pictures to follow I'm afraid! But food is good and at reasonable price!

Good nights sleep and ready for a bit of Oxford snapping. The most beautiful things to see in Oxford are of course the collages and universities, but I will say most of them are either closed to the public or you do have to pay a fee to get in! Didnt have a huge amount of time so decided to mooch around popping our heads in the ones available! There is something amazing about imagining yourself studying here, lucky students!

 

Lewes Carroll, author of one of my favourite stories, Alice in Wonderland (which celebrated its 150th anniversary this summer!) was maths lecturer at one of the main colleges here at Oxford, so Alice is an important character all around the city, including the cutest little shop! Which i managed to take a snap of the inside before getting told you couldn't take photos! Woops! I did spend a little time (and money) in the shop, everything from mirrors, mugs, books, aprons, tea cloths, pens, magnets, stamps, calendars, you name it! You get the picture...

The mad hatter and his tea parties are scattered all around the city, so when in Oxford, grab a cream tea! And what a place! It was a lovely afternoon and was able to sit outside!

Few more snaps for today! and that's all chucks!

Acropolicious Athens day 2!

Even though it was about weeks agonow, still hadn't got round to carrying this one on! But so much more to see and explore!

Great, so near the hotel (hotel fresh, Athens) found a good area FULL of the best cocktail bars, restaurants, I'm afraid the names in Greece are a bit mad and can't even remember what it is called now! oh well it will come to me... have a look!

  

So during the day walking around spotted this restaurant, Eat at Miltons, had to be visited at night, the food and everything turned out to be amazing! Food by Michelin star Chef Alain Parodi, but the prices were very affordable!

Calamari

Yes, got given this tray with bread, a tomato and oil, had to peak at the Greeks on the table next door to make sure we were allowed to just chunk it up and eat!! Yum!

And then of course, the all famous Moussaka,

There was also a lobster ravioli we ordered that went down great with cocktails!

Scattered back to the roof top bar at hotel...

The roof top bars in Athens are the best way to take in the amazing view of the Acropolis. Speaking of wich, its day 2, and so Agora it is.

 Now this is really something else, so glad got to do this, for me definitely the highlight of Athens

On to the Acropolis museum, which is literally down from the Acropolis. This was a separate entrance fee of arround 5/6€. 

Tehee! I do love Greek/Roman coins!! :)